As the “Pawn Stars” Instagram account promised in 2021, “all-new episodes return with some of the strangest, oldest, and rarest items we’ve ever seen.” And that’s a tall order for a show that’s been running since 2009.
As per Reuters, within one year of its premiere, “Pawn Stars” had become “the most-watched program on ad-supported cable.” The show also resulted in History scoring its highest viewing numbers ever. So, it’s little surprise the network’s been reticent to end its ratings juggernaut — despite the numerous controversies and scandals that have plagued the show.
A degree of strife and ignominy would inevitably play a role whenever you’re documenting an open all hours pawnbrokers in Las Vegas, Nevada. Then you have to factor in the larger-than-life Gold & Silver Pawn shop employees, Richard “Old Man” Harrison, his son Rick Harrison, grandson Corey “Big Hoss” Harrison,” and Corey’s longtime pal, Austin “Chumlee” Russell.
Given the cast, the nature of the business, and the decidedly colorful array of customers they deal with on an everyday basis, “Pawn Stars” was always guaranteed to bring the drama, both on and off-camera. However, the amount of drama exceeds all and any expectations. Get the popcorn ready; we’re breaking down the huge scandals that rocked Pawn Stars.
The “Pawn Stars” cast members are no strangers to brushes with the law. In 2014, they found themselves at the center of a legal battle yet again — this time for allegedly melting down a stolen antique coin collection. As per ABC News, in a criminal complaint filed at Clark County Justice Court, David Walters claimed his niece, Jennifer Beckman, stole his costly coin cache in 2013 and then sold it to the Gold & Silver Pawn shop.
Walters claimed the haul Beckman brought to Gold & Silver “netted a total of $12,375” but the aggrieved uncle claimed his collection’s actual value to be closer to $50,000. As soon as Walters realized the coins were missing, he immediately shopped his niece to the authorities, but when the cops contacted Gold & Silver Pawn, the coins “were already gone.”
“To the best of my knowledge, as the coins are unidentifiable, they may have been melted down,” a spokesperson for the store told Fox News. “They may have been sold. They may be in buckets with like coins waiting to be evaluated.” The rep went on to dispute Walters’ $50k valuation claim. “These coins were worth far less than the gentleman thought they were worth,” she said before insisting none of the “Pawn Stars” cast had done anything wrong or illegal.
Pawnbrokers deal with a spectrum of people — the strapped for cash, the desperate, the opportunists, the regular Joes just looking to score a bargain. Rick Harrison has encountered them all during his time, and he spilled on his customer “deals and steals” in an interview with NPR.
Harrison shared that the store’s busiest time is when there’s a big boxing match on. “I don’t know what it is about fight fans,” he said. “They always bet more than they can afford to lose.” Harrison then admitted he regularly acts as an unofficial bail bondsman for a certain sector of his clientele — pimps. “When they get arrested, they will always have someone bring their jewelry down to me,” he explained. “I will loan them half of what they paid for it — and that’s their bail money.”
However, just because he embraces the pimp life doesn’t mean the second generation pawnbroker takes a liberal view on all aspects of society. Far from it, in fact. During a CNN interview about his love for Marco Rubio, Harrison’s transphobia reared its ugly head. “You have some cities that are saying that if you have a man who feels like he’s a woman, he can use the women’s restroom,” he said. “I guarantee you that will be taken advantage of by some very bad men who want to go into a bathroom where there’s young ladies. That will happen if you pass a law like that.”
Corey Harrison treated the aptly named Spectators Bar to a performance they’ll likely never forget during a booze-fueled Jefferson City night out in 2014. As per RadarOnline, Corey and some biker buddies were riding in a sponsored motorcycle tour when they decided to make a pit stop in the Missouri capital. Harrison had allegedly been partying hard for seven nights straight before hitting the town. “Corey had been with us all week riding and had gotten drunk every night. But this particular night, he was very drunk,” an eyewitness claimed. “You could tell when we walked in the bar that it was not gonna go well. He was so sloppy drunk and so obnoxious, you just knew this was heading towards a bad scene.”
Perhaps inspired by Missouri’s “Show Me State” nickname, after downing “copious amounts of shots,” Harrison proceeded to expose himself then publicly urinate. “He got his pants down, peeing on a bar stool, being very proud of it,” the source told Radar, claiming one of the staff had to clean up after him with a towel. However, the show wasn’t over yet. After posing for fan photos with his pants down, Harrison “picked up a barstool and threw it,” resulting in him getting tossed out of the premises.
Corey later apologized for the drunken debacle. “Not my finest moment, obviously,” he told E! News. “I sincerely apologize to everyone for my behavior. I am truly sorry.”
Austin “Chumlee” Russell is definitely one of the shadiest of the “Pawn Stars” cast. As TMZ reported in 2012, he was caught on camera brawling with a dude in Hollywood before fleeing the scene. The victim was left bruised and bleeding on the side of the road, but Chumlee insisted he acted in “self-defense” after the guy “threatened to pull a gun” on him and his pals. “Instinct just took over. [The man] didn’t even know I was on TV or anything,” he told TMZ. “Just wanted to ride in our car and start problems.”
However, there was no excusing the scandal Chumlee was embroiled in four years later. As per the Chicago Tribune, in 2016, Russell landed in jail after being arrested “on suspicion of 20 felonies.” The arrest occurred after cops raided Russell’s house as part of their investigation into sexual assault accusations that had been made against him. The sexual assault charges were ultimately cleared, but Chumlee faced a new legal nightmare thanks to what was uncovered during the raid.
Per TMZ, cops seized “a huge laundry list of narcotics,” including weed, meth, and Xanax. They also discovered traces of cocaine and 12 guns, eight of which were unregistered. Chumlee ultimately copped a plea to escape a prison sentence. As per USA Today, Russell pled “guilty to a felony weapons charge — unlawful possession of a firearm — and to a gross misdemeanor of attempted drug possession.”
As the “Right This Minute” (via New York Post) reported, Richard and Rick Harrison were accused of choking and assaulting a 62-year-old disabled Vietnam veteran. Daniel Callahan claimed he got into an altercation with the two after taking his Model 96B rifle into the store for an appraisal. Apparently, things quickly took a turn for the worse. Callahan alleged the Harrisons put him “in a chokehold, dragged him through the store, and threw him onto the sidewalk.” He also claimed his rifle and walking stick were damaged during the purported incident.
As per “Right This Minute” (via NY Post), Callahan filed a lawsuit against Gold & Silver Pawn shop in April 2012, accusing the Harrisons of physical assault and seeking $20,000 in damages. After news of the lawsuit broke, Rick’s son, Corey Harrison, shot down Callahan’s story.
Big Hoss told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that Rick and Richard “were never in the room with [Callahan].” He alleged it was actually Callahan who was the aggressor. “[He was] absolutely irate with a weapon in his hand,” Corey claimed. “He was screaming, ‘I want to see the owner.’” He also insisted his staff had done nothing wrong. “I’m going with my employees because if I were out there, I would have done the exact same thing,” Corey said. “The way he was acting, it was in our best interests to get him out of there.”
A lot of money is paid to production companies in return for stars covertly endorsing brands’ products on camera — so it’s a win-win for both parties. Product placement is big business, and it’s rife in the TV and movie world. But nobody is as scandalously blatant about it as “Pawn Stars.”
There’s a reason the cast seem to be constantly chowing down on foot-longs, the counter is frequently littered with logo covered wrappers, and scenes often take place inside of a Subway restaurant. As per Trend Chaser, the fast-food giant happens to be “one of the show’s biggest sponsors,” and there’s nothing subtle about the arrangement. Take the time when, as Trend Chaser recounted, Corey Harrison picks up a Subway sandwich and “demonstrates how the auction will unfold later in the day” in the middle of a Subway.
And then there was the time Austin “Chumlee” Russell made a joke about Subway and the convicted sex offender who used to be the brand’s spokesperson. According to Screen Rant, while boasting about his own weight loss, Russell quipped about being “the next Jared from Subway.” No Chumlee, just, no.
